The Pokémon Company has announced 30th Celebration, a new Pokémon TCG set dropping worldwide on September 16 to mark the franchise's 30th anniversary. It introduces a brand-new rarity type and packs 30 different Pikachu cards — each illustrated by a different artist — into the lineup.
The new rarity is called Futuristic rare, illustrated by renowned Japanese artist YOSHIROTTEN. TPC describes the cards as depicting Pokémon in "striking artwork evocative of hope toward an unknown future." Every pack contains one of the 30 Pikachu variants, and prolific TCG artist Tomokazu Komiya debuts his first standalone Pikachu card in this set. Other artists featured include Amelicart, Whisker, and 5BanGraphics. Fan favorites Mew and Mewtwo also appear, and the trailer shows off sleepy-looking Eeveelution cards — TPC says the set depicts Pokémon "during different moments throughout daytime and nighttime."
The Pokémon TCG hobby has been hammered by resellers for years, with new releases routinely flipped at two to five times MSRP. A 30th anniversary set is exactly the kind of release that drives that behavior into overdrive, meaning collectors will either need to fight bots online or queue up early at retail.
The set hits shelves globally on September 16. Given how fast limited Pokémon TCG releases tend to vanish, 30th Celebration stock will almost certainly disappear fast.
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